Zhongli heard the hint of confusion in Kun Jun voice and returned to his senses.
"No, not at all. I just didn't expect to receive a gift at a time like this."
"Thank you. I'll take good care of it."
Zhongli looked at Kun Jun in front of him and expressed his gratitude.
"Thank you all for accepting my gift."
"A good gift only has meaning when given to someone who understands its value."
Kun Jun waved his hand at the group and said with a smile.
"I see there are quite a few stones in this area."
"Why don't you all rest for a bit? I'll take a stroll nearby and feel the stones while I'm at it."
Kun Jun looked at the four people in front of him and slowly said.
"Little Kun really does like stones, huh."
Paimon looked at the slightly cheerful Kun Jun and said with a smile.
"Ores are the crystallization of the earth, the sediment of time."
"Being with them puts me at ease."
Kun Jun looked at the group and explained.
"Take your time to rest. Just call me when you're ready to depart."
"I'll stay close by, I won't go far."
With that, Kun Jun walked off into the nearby area.
"Will he be okay on his own?"
Lumine looked at Kun Jun back, a bit concerned.
"No need to worry. I've already checked the surroundings."
"There's no danger."
Qiu Bai looked at the worried Lumine and smiled reassuringly.
"By the way, there's something I want to talk to you all about."
Zhongli looked at the three in front of him, his expression turning serious.
"Hm? You look kind of serious…"
Paimon tilted her head, confused, and looked at Zhongli.
"Go ahead, Morax."
Qiu Bai slowly spoke, looking at Zhongli. After all, everyone here was familiar with each other.
Lumine and Paimon both knew who Zhongli truly was and with Kun Jun already far away, Qiu Bai still preferred calling him Morax.
Zhongli nodded to Qiu Bai, then turned his gaze to Lumine.
"Traveler, about the Dragon-Sealing Stone…"
"Do you have any recollection of it?"
Zhongli crossed his arms and asked as he looked at Lumine.
"Nope."
Lumine shook her head and answered Zhongli obediently.
"You mean that type of ore Kun Jun was looking for, right?"
"Is there something special about it?"
Paimon looked at Zhongli, asking with some confusion.
"The Dragon-Sealing Stone is a very rare forging ore."
"Most common crystals form naturally under high-temperature conditions."
"But the Dragon-Sealing Stone is the crystallized result of elemental reactions."
Zhongli looked at the group in front of him and slowly explained.
"Elemental reactions can produce physical substances?"
Paimon asked, still puzzled.
"Yes, but only a very small portion of them can be preserved for long periods."
"The Dragon-Sealing Stone was born from events a thousand years ago and again three hundred years ago."
"Violent elemental clashes caused elemental crystallization and after the battles ended, these stones miraculously remained."
Zhongli continued his explanation.
"A thousand years ago… that must've been the battle when I purified Azhdaha."
"And three hundred years ago was the battle between Morax and Azhdaha."
Qiubai stroked his chin and murmured in his heart.
"So that's how it is…"
Paimon, listening to Zhongli's explanation, spread her hands and said,
"But since it's a crystallized creation, it's very rare and not well known."
"On top of that, it was completely mined out two hundred years ago."
Zhongli looked at the group and added,
"Why, then, are people in modern-day Liyue looking for a type of ore that no longer exists?"
He stroked his chin, sounding a little puzzled.
"Oh yeah! If he knows this kind of stone exists then he should also know it's already been mined to extinction, right?"
Paimon looked at Zhongli, equally confused.
"So strange… it makes no sense at all."
She scratched her head, clearly not understanding.
"There are indeed a few mining professionals who remain interested in the Dragon-Sealing Stone."
"But someone like Brother Kun, who can't even explain why he's looking for it… that's very rare."
Zhongli slowly said while rubbing his chin.
"Maybe he has another motive."
Lumine looked at everyone with a hint of suspicion.
"Another motive…? You mean he might be a bad guy?!"
Paimon covered her chest, a bit scared.
"It's hard to draw conclusions right now. Let's just wait and see how things unfold."
"Don't forget, the most important task right now is rescuing the missing miners."
"As for everything else, the truth will reveal itself in time."
Zhongli waved his hand as he explained to everyone.
"The distance to our target is shrinking. I believe we should continue along this path."
"If we can find one of them, we can find the rest."
Zhongli looked at the group and spoke calmly.
"As for this worker, we can settle him at the camp for now."
"Once we resolve the incident, we'll come back to check on him. Leave a note for Old Dai just in case he shows up, he can handle things in time."Qiu Bai continued from Zhongli's words, smiling at the others.
"Then let's go find Brother Kun."
"Keep investigating."
Zhongli nodded to Qiu Bai, then left a note behind. The group headed in Kun Jun direction.
"Little Kun!"
"It's time to go!"
Paimon flew over to Kun Jun and called out loudly.
"Alright, alright!"
"I've pretty much finished wandering around here."
Kun Jun waved his hand as he saw the group approaching.
"Did you find anything, Brother Kun?"
Qiu Bai asked curiously.
"The rocks in this area are beautiful, but nothing particularly special."
"I tried placing my hand on them, but no new clues emerged."
Kun Jun spread his hands as he explained to Qiu Bai.
"As expected."
"A rock's memory can also change over time and with its environment."
Kun Jun placed his hands on his hips and sighed.
"Is there any pattern to it?"
Lumine asked with curiosity.
"Uh… it's hard to summarize... at least, in my opinion."
"Most of what remains in the ore is recent memory."
Kun Jun explained to the group.
"There's no way to see ancient memories?"
Paimon spread her hands and asked in confusion.
"Stone endures, but time wipes away many memories."
"Only emotions and wills that were extremely intense can be preserved for long."
Kun Jun crossed his arms and said slowly.
"That's so realistic."
"They're just like people."
Paimon waved her hands, surprised.
She never expected that stones, like humans, also go through time and forget the past.
"Sigh."
"Maybe… this is what we call 'erosion'."
Qiu Bai let out a sigh.
For example, can an old grandpa still remember exactly what he did when he was ten?
The older a person lives, the harder it becomes to recall the past.
Except for those deep emotions and unshakable thoughts, almost everything else is forgotten.
You may pour your heart and soul into creating something.
But over the span of countless years, you might even forget you ever created it.
And sometimes, for various reasons you might even destroy the very thing you painstakingly brought into existence.
Destroying what you made with your own blood, sweat, and tears not because you've let go… but because you've forgotten.
(T/N: Like the story fellow daoist? Read 20 chapters ahead on my P@treon [p@treon.com/DaoistRongyi] Thanks for your support! 😊)